


help is not coming

by smartbuckley



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Blood, Evan Buckley is Haunted, Gen, Ghosts, Hurt Evan Buckley, Paranormal, Pre-Slash, Spirits, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-01
Updated: 2019-11-01
Packaged: 2021-01-16 02:54:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21263906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smartbuckley/pseuds/smartbuckley
Summary: “I just hope they understand.”“Who understands?”“The spirits we disturbed. I don’t need that mess following me home.”------------------Or, the one where the spirits follow Buck home. And go after him.





	help is not coming

**Author's Note:**

> This has been an amazing piece to write. I'm a fan of the paranormal - I go paranormal hunting in my spare time, so this was... have I said amazing? Because it was. It was written purely for starkdear / syd on twitter, after her amazing video was retweeted by Oliver Stark himself (which you can watch [here](https://twitter.com/starkdear/status/1186172182298316800). I hope you guys enjoy this, and Syd, I hope it fits your expectations and you especially enjoy it. And happy somewhat belated halloween, folks, even though there's still forty-five minutes of it left, lol.

“I just hope they understand.” Buck hears Hen say as they walk from the gravesite, a small grin turning into something soft, showing his confusion at her words.

“Who understands?” He ends up asking, looking towards Hen while still walking, though slowly down as he waits for an answer, wondering what she could possibly mean by  _ that _ .

“The spirits we disturbed. I don’t need that mess following me home.” Hen states, Buck stopping completely as he blinks in surprise at the woman, looking at her back while she walks away before looking back towards the digging machine, jumping when it falls forward due to another sinkhole, his heart beating inside of his chest as he scoffs lightly, shaking his head. 

He makes his way to the truck, grinning at Hen and everyone else once he pulls himself inside, tilting his head back and letting out a small sigh as he thinks about Hen’s words. He has no idea why he’s thinking about it, no idea why he’s stuck on the idea of something following Hen home, and he finds himself looking at her, full of curiosity as he tries to find a way to broach the subject to her without everyone judging or mocking him.

Opening and closing his mouth, he’s about to ask when the alarm sounds off inside of the truck and he shakes his head at Hen, who had noticed he had been about to speak, his hand moving to form a gesture that indicates he’ll talk to her later.

The call is a quick one, not necessarily easy but one that distracts Buck enough from the thoguhts that had been running through his mind long enough that when he’s back in the truck, the team and himself carry on conversation from earlier, Buck not remembering that he had wanted to talk to Hen about her comment.

The rest of the night goes the exact same, and as Buck watches the sun rise, he can’t help but let out a soft smile, turning his head towards the front when he hears Bobby telling everyone about their next, and hopefully last, call.

It’s dangerous, just as all calls are, but this one is more so, since it deals with the trail and a possible death. But Buck feels safe, knowing that Eddie is watching his back and Bobby and Chim are watching the harness holding them. The call goes as normal as it can go, until the kid mentions he had never called 911 in the first place.

At that point, Buck -- Buck feels something shoot through him, his spine tingling as his heart pounds inside of his chest. There’s no way, he thinks. Absolutely  _ no way _ that this guy didn’t call 911, that his phone was damaged. He tries to put the thoughts out of his mind though, shaking his head as they bring the guy up slowly, but all he can think about is the fact that a  _ ghost _ called 911 for this guy. Part of him wonders if the ghost is from the person they found the remains of, and his heart beat harder at that idea, palms become sweaty as he wonders what that could mean.

It’s all he can think about on the ride back to the firestation, all he can talk about even -- he can tell he’s annoying the others, can tell they’re humoring him even, and for that, he’s thankful he hasn’t brought up what Hen had said earlier, because by now -- by now, he’s thinking about that once more.

When his shift is finally over, Buck finds himself thankful, heading towards his locker, exhausted. It takes him a few minutes to open his lock, grumbling in frustration as he tries for a third time before opening it with a soft exclamation of success, routing around for his wallet and keys, frowning when he can’t find either of them.

“What the hell,” he whispered to himself, moving things around, wondering where on earth his wallet and keys are before finding them moments later, pushed all the way to the back of the locker shelf. Buck frowns once more, shaking his head before grabbing both and slamming the locker door shut, making his way to the parking lot where his car is.

* * *

When he finally makes it home, Buck can feel the exhaustion settling deep into his bones, eyes barely able to stay open long enough for him to place his keys and wallet down by the door, lock his door and then slowly make his way up the stairs to his loft. He brushes his teeth on automatic, barely hearing and seeing anything, his eyes drooping bad enough that everything surrounding him is shadows. When he’s done that, it feels like an eternity as he walks out of the bathroom and towards his bed, falling asleep on it almost immediately, thankful for the blackout curtains he has in this moment for blocking out the sunlight from the windows down below. 

By the time Buck wakes up, it’s late afternoon, nearing closer to the early evening, and he feels completely refreshed. He’s awake before his alarm goes off, which is a first, and when he’s cooking himself some food, thankful that he’s definitely progressed past the breakfast stage with Bobby, he realizes that his wallet and keys aren’t near the door like they should be.

Frowning, Buck tries to think back to the previous night as he continues cutting up the vegetables he wants to cook, trying to remember if maybe he placed his stuff somewhere else but he swears he didn’t, swears he placed them on the little table by his door. Letting out a small sigh of frustration, Buck continues to cook, music playing softly from his phone as he looks around the room without leaving the kitchen, hoping he can spot his phone and keys soon, especially since he’ll have to leave shortly to get ready for his next shift. The time flies by while he continues cooking, and Buck himself gets lost in the music, forgetting about his keys and phone to the point where, while he knows he’ll have to look for them, he also doesn’t think too much about it.

By the time Buck is done cooking dinner, the sun has set, and he knows he needs to get ready to leave soon. Placing whatever food he has left over into containers, Buck lets out a small sigh as he begins another cursory glance around the room, trying to find his wallet and keys, even by checking underneath the couch cushions and in some of his kitchen drawers. Still unable to find both, Buck ends up upstairs, knowing he’ll have to look later, and jumps into the shower, letting out a small noise of exclamation as the water is still quite cold.

He’s not in the shower long before he’s jumping out and towelling himself off, pulling out some clothes he can wear under his uniform before making his way downstairs, grabbing his phone quickly, freezing on the lower level when he notices his wallet and keys exactly where he left them the night before. Heart pounding in his chest, Buck tilts his head momentarily before shaking it, letting out a small breath before grabbing both and leaving quickly, locking his door and nearly running down to the main floor of his building.

* * *

Getting to the station is easy, quick, a routine that Buck knows like the back of his head. He takes the same roads, listens to the same music, on the same station, even cringes whenever Taylor Kelly came on. He buys tea from the same place, puts in the same amount of milk, and takes the same amount of sips while driving. Everything is absolutely the same, and Buck wouldn’t change it for one minute. Of course, today was a little weird, with the fact that every station he tried was static, and most of his routes were clogged with traffic, but Buck didn’t mind. He didn’t mind taking the scenic route, or using bluetooth on his phone to listen to music that way. He didn’t mind texting Bobby either, telling him he might be a few minutes late because of the scenic route he had to take.

At one point, it had seemed like his car was even going to break down, his engine sputtering a few times, making Buck frown, since he knew he had filled everything up recently. Luckily, his engine had made it to his station with no problems, so Buck had put it out of his mind, and started getting ready for the day.

That was routine too. Everything was routine, which Buck liked and needed, and thrived off. And then Hen had entered the house, looking worse for wear, and Buck found himself frowning.

“Everything alright?” He couldn’t help but ask, walking towards the woman with a heart of gold, holding onto his tea with a frown, wondering what’s going through the woman’s mind. He looked her over while waiting for a response, frowning when he sees her yawn and then letting out a soft breath of relief when she smiles at him.

“Yeah, Buckaroo, everything’s fine. Just almost missed my shift. All of my clocks stopped at 3:07 PM, weirdly enough,” Hen answers and Buck finds himself tilting his head, curious, before he lets out a chuckle.

“That’s almost as weird as me losing my wallet and my keys and then mysteriously finding them again,” he admits, tilting his mug up with a grin while Hen chuckles, though he can tell she’s pondering that statement, and he tries not to think about it either.

“Weirder things have happened,” Hen ends up saying while Buck chuckles, nudging her before eyeing the stairs. 

“Let’s go upstairs, see if anyone else from the team is around,” his voice is soft, Hen knowing he’s trying for a distraction and letting him. The walk up the stairs is slow and easy-going, discussion loose and about nothing too serious, Buck grinning when they reach the top and see Chim and Eddie there.

“What are you two talking about?” Hen asks, stepping forward while Buck takes a sit next to Eddie, knee nudging his friends’ playfully while the two grin at one another, Buck ignoring the way his heart soars over having Eddie’s attention on him, even if it’s for a few quick seconds.

“We were talking about what we would have done if someone had climbed out of a grave in front of us,” Chimney answers eventually, Buck tearing his eyes away from his best friend as he wrinkles his nose in distaste and Eddie laughs.

“We were also talking about ghosts in general, since Buck here still seems sure that a ghost called in the hiker yesterday,” he teases, Buck rolling his eyes in response as he shakes his head.

“If the hiker’s phone was damaged, how else did we know to go out there?” He questions, his shoulders forming a quick shrug as no one can respond with an answer. It wouldn’t matter anyway, of course, with the alarms going off and the entire team jumping up and moving, following the protocol and the routine that they all know.

“Where’s Cap?” Buck asks before pulling himself up into the truck.

“Right here,” Bobby responds, surprising Buck before he grins and the trucks make their way out of the station. The team talks quietly as they head towards where they’re needed, Buck not completely joining the conversation as his mind goes to what he can do when his shift is over.

The call is a fire in a three floor apartment building. Everyone is out, thankfully, and the fire is easy to contain and put out but at one point, Buck swears he sees someone following him and Hen, swears that there’s a shadow behind them and he has to shake his head and stop for a moment when they’re finally outside, rubbing his chest as she looks at him. He wonders if she saw it also, wonders if maybe he’s going mad, but he shakes the thought away and grins at her, shrugging his shoulders.

“Must be having an off day,” he admits, his grin becoming soft as she nods her head. The rest of Buck’s shift isn’t any different, though if he feels like he’s being followed, that’s no one’s business but his own.

The next morning, the team’s shift is finally over and they all make their way to the lockers, exhaustion settling in. The night was an alright night, made worse when they lost one at the end of it. They were all affected differently by the loss, Hen taking it harder than normally since she was the one who had tried to do the saving. No one knew what to say, no one what could be said, but they did know that Hen didn’t want to talk this morning, just wanted to go home and spend time with her family.

Buck could understand that, could understand wanting to be with loved ones when something went wrong. Briefly, Buck thought about Abby, and Maddie, before eventually his mind turned towards Eddie and Christopher, his cheeks turning red as he tried to ignore that thought, just like always. His mind is gone, lost in thoughts and ideas as he changes out of his uniform and grabs his stuff before making his way to his car, saying goodbye to everyone. He doesn’t remember much -- not getting into his car, not picking up a quick dinner, not even parking in the parking lot of his apartment complex, and when he places his car in park, Buck finds himself blinking, wondering  _ what the hell _ before he rubs his face with his hands and then looks up. From where he parks, he can see the windows to his own apartment, and he finds himself smiling softly before he frowns, leaning forward as he notices a figure standing in one of his windows.

The curtains are partially covering the windows, and the figure looks to be dressed in white, and pale, so pale. He finds himself leaning forward once more, opening his car door and stepping out, slowly, hesitantly. The figure is still and Buck takes one more step forward, eyes widening when the figure looks down, looks at him directly. Without thought, he runs to the doors of his complex, runs up all three flights of stairs, hands shaking as he tries to unlock his front door. He takes a deep breath, shaking his head before unlocking the door and opening it, blinking when he sees no figure standing in front of his windows.

Taking a cautious step forward, Buck looks around, moving towards places anyone could hide and not seeing  _ anything _ . His heart pounds inside of his chest as he continues to look around his home, frowning when there’s no one, anywhere, not even upstairs, or in the closets.

“What the hell,” he whispers, fingers coming up to run through his hair as he lets out a breath, jumping when his phone lets out a shrill ring before chuckling at himself. Shaking his head, Buck manages to stumble to his couch, rubbing his chest while answering his phone and breathing before placing it to his ear and stumbling over the word hello.

The other line is quiet for a few minutes, and Buck finds himself frowning, repeating hello a few times before groaning when he hears nothing on the end. “Anyone there?” He asks, waiting once more before hanging up and throwing the phone onto his table, hands coming up to rub at his face once more.

“You’re just imagining things, Buckley,” he whispered to himself, eyes tightening as he remembers how tired he is, and how emotionally fraught he is after everything that’s happened. He doesn’t move, just stays on the couch for a little while until his stomach growls, and he remembers the food he had brought with him, turning his body around to see if he dropped it in front of his door. A small sigh of relief is let loose when he sees the bag with his containers, and he makes his way up, leaning down to grab the bag before blinking when it flies out of his reach and towards where he was originally sitting.

“Hell no,” he whispers, closing his eyes and shaking his head, jumping once more when his phone rings. 

“Not happening,” he whispers, back becoming straight as he takes a gulp and makes a step forward, hesitant to answer his phone and waiting for it to stop ringing before he relaxes completely.

Until it rings again. 

Closing his eyes, Buck sucks back a breath before picking it up, frowning when he notices Hen is the one calling, a jolt of  _ something _ coursing through his body at the image of her that pops up. He shakes his head, scoffing, wondering what the hell he has to worry about when it’s  _ Hen _ , before he picks up his phone and answers it.

“Heya Wilson. What’s going on?” He answers, thankful his breathing is controlled and he’s not panting ou in fear. The line remains silent, but Buck can hear Hen breathing on the other end of the line, so he waits, eyebrow arching curiously as the silence reigns for a few minutes before Hen clears her throat.

“I uh - Karen and Denny aren’t at home tonight. I forgot, but they’re at Karen’s parents. I uh - I’d rather not be alone. Can I come by?” Hen questions and Buck frowns, his heart pounding as he wonders why Hen is coming to him and not Chim, or even Bobby, since she’s closer to them.

“Of course, you’re always welcomed, Hen. Just -- why?” He can’t help but ask, biting his lower lip as he stands up and heads towards the food, trying not to hesitate while he leans down to pick it up, thankful when nothing happens and he grasps the bag and hauls it towards the couch so he can eat  _ something _ . 

“I just have this feeling that you’re probably experiencing what I’m experiencing,” Hen whispers and Buck lets out a soft gasp, looking at the windows and blinking at the sight of a shadow, shaking his head before breathing.

“Yeah, uh. You should come over then,” he whispers, rubbing his face before turning on the television, hoping there’s something on the television tonight that can distract him. He’s flipping the channels aimlessly, not caring enough to turn on the lights in his home since there’s enough sunlight peeking through the blinds, before saying goodbye to Hen and shutting his phone down. He doesn’t know how much time has passed, or how cold his food has become, just knows that eventually, his door is opening and he’s thankful he had messaged Hen telling her to just come on in. She hesitates when she gets to his couch before sitting next to his left side, letting out a small breath as she opens up her own food.

“So uh…” Hen begins and Buck makes a non-committal noise in his throat, not sure what he could say but wanting to say  _ something _ .

“We were followed home, it seems,” he ends up whispering while Hen nods, legs coming up to rest criss-crossed in front of her.

“What--” Hen begins before shaking her head and letting out a soft breath, shoulders slumping. They don’t say anything, just take comfort in each other’s presence before Buck settles on a channel to watch. 

“We have tonight off.” He whispers, Hen nodding as she lets out her own breath.

“I just -- I didn’t want to be alone. Not after losing that kid, and not after seeing that shadow and certainly not after seeing it in my home,” Hen whispers and Buck lets out a choked sound, knowing now that Hen saw the shadow also. Briefly, he looks towards the window, making another sound when he sees the pale figure still standing there before looking at Hen with wide eyes.

“Yeah, I can definitely understand that,” Buck whispers, ignoring the way Hen’s own eyes widen before she shakes her head and begins breathing slowly. They remain quiet for who knows how long, watching the show on the television that Buck had chosen but not paying attention to it whatsoever, eating slowly while ignoring the pale figure in the corner.

The next time anyone speaks, the sun is high in the sky and Buck finds himself completely relaxed, something he hasn’t felt since stepping foot into his house this morning. 

“So uh, your wallet and keys?”

“Had disappeared for more than an hour,” Buck whispers, rubbing his face while his phone rings out with a text from Maddie, telling him she wished he had a good Halloween and she’ll call him later. By now, they’re alone, and they’re relaxed and looking at Hen, Buck wonders if she’s going to try and go back home.

“You think everything’s going to be ok?” Buck asks, and Hen nods, letting out another breath before she stands up and stretches.

“It’s nothing,” Buck says, Hen nodding. They both know they’re both trying to fool themselves, but right now, in the light of the day, it’s something they can do with no regrets and no second thoughts.

“Yeah, I’ll head home now. I have no idea what was going through my head, but thanks for this, Buckaroo,” Hen says, carefully slapping Buck’s shoulder as he lets out a small chuckle, nodding his head, walking Hen to his door. They linger for a few moments before saying goodbye, Buck closing the door and then hesitating in turning around, taking a deep breath.

When he finally does though, his entire body slumps forward, and he lets out a chuckle. He’s going insane. That’s it, that’s all, he says, going about his day like there’s nothing wrong.

Even though there was. And the next day would only be worse.

* * *

Knowing he has the next day off with Hen and he can’t fall asleep unless he wants to mess up his whole night, Buck decides to head towards the kitchen, a small yawn escaping from him, to clean up the few dishes Hen and he had made. He estimates it’s just shortly after one in the afternoon by the sun in the sky, and, ignoring the way his stomach grumbles in hunger once more, Buck sets about filling the sink up with water and soap, trying to keep his mind busy as a new movie begins to play on the television.

Slowly, his shoulders begin to tense, goosebumps rising on his neck and the back of his arms that he tries his hardest to ignore. He can hear footsteps coming from upstairs, but he doesn’t need to look up towards his room to know it’s completely empty, and tries his hardest to continue to ignore everything. It’s just his mind playing tricks on him, he thinks, with a nod towards himself. There’s no way that there’s a ghost or a spirit in his home, haunting him, he adds with a soft release of breath.

He’s trying so hard to make everything seem okay, that he doesn’t pay attention to how the cupboards will open and close on their own, or the blanket on the couch moves randomly. He especially doesn’t pay attention to the fact that his wallet and keys are no longer on the table by the door. It’s all just a trick of the mind, he thinks to himself with a frown, shaking his head and then trying to relax his shoulders.

With dishes nearly done, Buck sets about reheating one of the containers he saved from his dinner the previous night, eating it with a hint of loneliness that he tries to ignore before eventually cleaning up those dishes and putting them away, heading towards the couch, feeling more emotionally wrought than he ought to be. He spends the rest of the day on the couch, moving between there, the kitchen and the washroom before eventually deciding to head up to bed when the sky is dark and the time is late.

When he’s finally done everything that needs to be done before falling asleep, Buck settles into his bed with an appreciative sigh before letting himself close his eyes and get comfortable, slipping into sleep easily. 

He tosses and turns during the night, sleeping steadily despite the fact that he’s dreaming about shadows once again, a feeling crawling up his skin, his blanket shifting with the weight of it all. Darkness surrounds him, and he continues to toss and turn, so deep in the throes of his dream that the fact that there’s a figure standing over him elongated to the point where everything is blackness around Buck, doesn’t reach his subconscious level. 

Thankfully.

But then the clock strikes 3:07, and doesn’t move forward again and Buck is gasping awake, panting, heart beating fast and hard inside his chest, sweat pouring down his forehead and neck. His eyes roam around the loft area where he sleeps, and when he doesn’t see anything, he slowly finds himself frowning but calming down nonetheless. Just as Buck finds himself relaxing completely, a loud shatter sounds throughout the house, and he jumps, blankets twisting as he tries to get out of his bed, heart pounding.

It takes him a few minutes to untwist the blankets from himself, movements frantic as he stands up, stumbling to the steps to go down, slipping and trying not to scream as his ankle twists, breathing heavy.

He doesn’t know how it happens but he’s suddenly at the bottom of his staircase, fingers grasping at the hardwood floor as he lets out a small whimper, shaking his head. He closes his eyes for a few minutes, trying to calm his breathing down, breathing as deep as he can before letting it go and repeating the process.

When he opens his eyes, he finds himself thankful that there’s no one or nothing there, and he huddles into the corner, trying to move his ankle every few minutes as the sun rises, not wanting to move until then.

* * *

By the time Buck decides to get up for the day, he’s fine on his ankle, though it’s a little sore, and he feels absolutely panicked over spending time in his home by himself. He makes his way up the stairs slowly, showering and changing before grabbing his phone and shooting a text to Hen, asking if she wants to do anything while he cooks himself something quick to eat.

When Hen texts back, Buck can feel his heart plummeting into his chest as he reads her words, trying not to panic.

** _Sorry, Buckaroo, Karen wanted to treat me today. Maybe next time_ ** .

He shakes his head though, scrolls through his contacts only to realize everyone he knows is working today. Hen was his only hope, and he closes his eyes while trying to control his breathing before nodding. It’s okay, he thinks. He could get out of the apartment to do things by himself. He knows he needs to pick up some groceries, so he’ll do that. And then maybe he’ll go by the laundromat, since he’s running low on clothes and the laundry in the basement of the building isn’t working.

Yeah, that sounds like a plan, he thinks, moving around the kitchen as he makes a mental grocery list. The minutes fly by until he’s ready to leave, his keys in his hands as he tries to find his phone, frowning when it’s not in the spot he  _ knows _ he placed it. He searches for a few minutes, breathing getting heavier as his cushions come undone and cupboards remain open, closing his eyes when it still doesn’t come up.

He can feel himself beginning to panic more, almost wants to leave without it, nearly makes the decision to do so until he hears it ringing and turns towards it, eyes widening as it sits on the table by the door, somewhere he knows he didn’t go near. Making his way to it hesitantly, he picks it up, frowning when it doesn’t appear to have a call on the other line, but still playing some form of ringtone.

“Jesus,” he whispered to himself, rubbing his face and shaking his head before opening his door and getting the hell out of his home, barely remembering to lock everything up. It’s mid morning by the time he’s halfway through buying his groceries, his body having relaxed completely, when his phone rings. Thinking nothing of it, he answers it with a simple hello, frowning when there’s no answer, saying hello a few more times before sighing and looking at the caller id, heart beginning to race when he notices that it’s coming from the landline he owns - a rare thing to have in this day and age, but something he and Maddie decided on a long time ago.

“Hello?” He asks once more, goosebumps appearing on his arms as the hair raises in response. He bites his lower lip, shakes his head and lets out a small breath of frustration.

“Hell---”

“SAY GOODBYE!” Is shouted at him, his body bending in the aisle he’s in as static crackles through his ear drums, eyes shut in pain before all he hears is nothing on his phone, with no sign of a call having been made when he looks through the logs. Breathing deeply, Buck makes his way to the cash registers, shaking his head as he loads everything onto the belt and waits for the items to be rung up, hands shaking and nerves at an all time high. Eventually, everything is rung up and in his reusable bags, because he’s environment conscientious, thank you very much, and he makes his way to his parked jeep, driving off as safely as he can.

By the time he makes it home, his steps are hesitant but he opens the door and enters, placing everything down onto the kitchen counters carefully, frowning when he sees the cupboards closed and the cushions back on the couch. He ignores the way his heart pounds inside his chest, ignores how he can feel the beginning of a panic attack coming on and clutches onto the counter, leaving his phone in the front pocket of his jeans just in case.

Always just in case.

He’s taking his time putting away his groceries when he finally stops clutching his counter, making sure everything is in its rightful place, letting out deep breaths every few minutes as a way to calm himself. His back is to his island after a few minutes, putting away the things that belong in cupboards. He doesn’t know how much time he spends just staring before eventually turning around, jolting in surprise when he sees the rest of his groceries floating in mid air.

“Fuck,” he whispers, jumping when everything falls to the ground, cartons and bottles smashing open and breaking. Swallowing, Buck makes his way around the island to the stairs, frowning as he hears noises coming from the bathroom. Taking one step up and then another, Buck finds himself hesitant to make his way up but eventually, he’s at the landing, telling himself he can do this. 

Placing one foot forward, Buck lets out a scream when his other foot is knocked out from underneath him, his body thrown backwards, down the stairs, slammed against the windows, causing them to shake as his body falls, slumped forward. He lets out a small groan, trying to stand up but once more finds himself knocked down before he feels fingers clutching his ankle, dragging him to the table he has in front of the television. He lets out a scream, shifting his body, trying to remove the hand around his ankle before letting out a sob when there’s nothing in front of him but still scratching, feeling the fingers around him. His body is slammed into the table, and then the television set and a small groan made its way out of him, and he can feel a pain in his side, and he wonders, when this is going to end.

Nothing happens for a few minutes and Buck finds himself relaxing only slightly, eyes fluttering as he begins to breath heavy, trying to reach the phone he’s thankful he put in his pocket. Just as his fingers grasp it though, his body is dragged once more. He tries to grab anything to stop his momentum, grabbing onto the cable for the lamp he has, sobbing when it comes unplugged and the lamp falls, his body ending up in the corner of his windows and the wall coming out by the island. 

His sides hurt even more now, his ankle swollen and he lets his body fall back before his world goes black.

* * *

_ “911, what’s your emergency _ ?” He’s panting, and somewhere inside of him, he can recognize the voice on the other line belongs to his sister. He doesn’t know how long he was unconscious for, could barely reach his phone to make the call, but the sun is low in the sky and there’s a fire coming from where the lamp was, and Buck finds himself  _ terrified _ that he’s going to be burned alive, unable to stop it or leave because of some goddamn ghost or something.

_ “Maddie, I need your help,” _

_ “Buck?”  _ He hears, and his breathing becomes heavier as he notices a shadow standing in the frame of his closed doors. It’s tall, and terrifying, and it lurks in ways he doesn’t understand, coming closer with each second. He doesn’t know what to tell his sister, opening and closing his mouth, but before anything can come out, the shadow is suddenly in front of him, the room completely dark save for the fire, and he’s sure he’s screaming, sure Maddie is screaming for him, but he doesn’t recognize any of it, not with the shadow in his face, screaming right at him.

“Buck!” He hears from far away, the blaze in his apartment growing as the grip holding onto him tightens and the face in front of him becomes more terrifying. Everything is loud but muted, and Buck doesn’t know where he is or what’s going on, just that he wants it  _ over _ . He doesn’t hear his phone end the call, or Maddie’s worried cries, just the screams of whatever is in front of him.

_ “911, what’s your emergency?” _

_ “Yes, hi, I’m calling from Glendale, and there’s an apartment on fire. Looks to be about, third, fourth floor maybe?” _

_ “Alright, we’ll be dispatching a team out for you _ .”

* * *

The moment the alarms ring, Eddie gets a bad feeling in his stomach, looking towards Chim and frowning when the other man only shrugs in response. He makes his way to the truck, looking at his side as he misses Hen and Buck before looking towards Bobby and listening to what the other man has to say, the feeling in his stomach growing. Eddie has no idea where they’re going, not having caught the words from Bobby as he blows out a breath, trying to relax himself. The ride isn’t long though, and before he knows it, everyone is exiting the truck and grabbing what they need, Eddie looking up before jolting in surprise, eyes widening.

“Cap!” He shouts, stumbling backwards as he looks for Bobby, who has stopped moving alongside Chim.

“Cap, this is Buck’s apartment building,” he shouts in response, eyes widening when he notices Maddie running towards them from the opposite side of the road, pointing at the fire they need to be putting out, and Eddie realizes --

“The fire is in Buck’s apartment,” he shouts, and Eddie can see the panic ring through the Captain’s and Chimney’s eyes. They’re short Buck and short Hen, even though both spots are technically filled, and Eddie has no idea what’s going on, especially once Maddie comes up to them.

“Buck called me on the dispatch line, about twenty minutes ago? There was so much screaming, and then the line just ended,” Maddie says, body shaking as Eddie squeezes her shoulder, trying to comfort her  _ somehow _ . He knows he’s not standing there for long, but it feels like it as another station comes to join and help, the fire seeming out of control by now, and Eddie finds himself surprised to see Hen coming along with wide, scared eyes.

“Hen, what are you -- I thought Karen had -- Chimney begins while Hen shakes her head.

“Tried calling Buck -- he -- shit,” she whispers, shaking her head before letting out a breath. “Do y’all remember the cemetary call?” She waits for the others to nod, Eddie moving closer so he can hear everything.

“That night, I mentioned not wanting to be followed home by any spirits. Except, I was. And so was Buck. The past few days, we were experiencing things, things that were terrifying and unexplained. Buck texted me today, saying he didn’t want to be alone, but --” she finishes shrugging, and Eddie can feel his heart sinking as Maddie lets out a groan.

“I had a bad feeling though, so I called for a cleansing and then came here,” Hen adds and everyone nods, turning to look at Bobby as he himself nods.

“Alright, let’s go everyone. You know the drill,” he says and the team disperse, ready to save Buck.

* * *

The fire is contained easily, somehow just located to Buck’s apartment,  _ surrounding _ him, and that scares nearly everyone. Buck can barely see anyone past the flames, and the shadow, but suddenly he sees Bobby and there’s something in him that relaxes, knowing that everything is going to be okay.

Before anything can happen though, Buck can see the shadow once more, and he's being thrown away from Bobby, closer to the fire, and all Buck can do is yell --

"BOBBY!" 

"BUCK!" The fire continues to roar, almost like it's in his ears and all Buck wants to do is scream, before he realizes he does, and he is, and then -- quiet. And when he looks up, he sees Bobby, through the flames.

He doesn’t know how long it takes before the fire is put out, but suddenly Eddie and Chimney are surrounding him to the left, and Buck is looking at them, focusing on Eddie more often than not, heart pounding inside his chest as he hears Bobby tell someone that it’s okay to come up. He blinks in surprise as like encompasses the room, realizes it’s just artificial light, but his surprise takes a toll when he sees Maddie and Hen coming up, with a --

“Is that a priest?” He mumbles, cringing when Eddie pulls up his pants to bandage his ankle before gasping, everyone in the room falling still. Frowning, Buck looks down at his ankle, blinking at the bruise on it, in the shape of a hand, fingers curving where he felt the fingers grabbing at him before.

“Oh,” he whispers, looking towards Hen with wide eyes as she lets out a choked sob.

“This is a person who does cleansings, Buck. Of the spirits that follow people,” she whispers, and Buck looks towards the person, nodding his head in understanding before his eyes close as the words being said wash over him and his ankle slowly gets bound. When everything is finally done, Buck finds himself looking towards Eddie, smiling softly, before turning towards Chim and Bobby, a breath of relief escaping him when he feels his ankle begin feeling fine when wrapped.

“Looks like it’s just severely bruised and sprained,” Eddie whispers and Buck nods, thankful for that before turning to Hen and Maddie, arching his eyebrows as a question.

“I had a bad feeling after you texted me, so I made my way over. Bumped into Maddie, who said you called her,” Hen responds, and Buck nods, understanding as Bobby stands over him.

“Alright, Buckaroo, time to get you to the hospital, make sure everything is okay. Looks like your kitchen just needs some work, alongside the flooring, but luckily, you’re alright.” Bobby says, his hand grabbing Buck’s and dragging him upwards. He finds himself nodding, letting out a small breath as he looked around, noticing how his place is a damn mess.

“This is going to take forever to clean,” Buck mumbles while Maddie grins.

“No worries, little brother. Chimney and I will do what we can,” she volunteers while Chimney makes a noise in the back of his throat and everyone laughs, Eddie stepping closer to wrap his right arm around Buck’s waist, helping Bobby hold the man while also making sure he’s okay. Buck smiles at Eddie, nodding his head slightly before feeling himself relax for the first time since the cemetery.

“Hey bud?” Eddie questions, voice soft as the group slowly leads Buck down to the ambulance, Buck responding with a hum.

“Next time you end up getting followed by a spirit, maybe call one of us, yeah?” Eddie finishes while everyone else chuckles. “You too, Hen,” he adds with a grin, remembering that Hen had said she had been followed also, both of them nodding in response.

Buck doesn’t know what’s going to happen next, and there’s a small amount of fear that he’ll still be followed by spirits later on but for now, he feels like everything is fine, and going to be fine, with no worries.

“I’ll try my hardest,” Buck states with a grin, slowly getting into the ambulance, grinning when Eddie follows him in while Bobby only smirks, something Buck ignores.

“You  _ will _ , bud,” He says before the ambulance doors shut, and everyone heads towards the nearest hospital, the shadow watching from afar, screaming in anger.

**Author's Note:**

> Did you enjoy this? Leave me a review over what you liked and what you didn't, as I love comments. Or, come yell at me on my [tumblr](https://laumeidelfin.tumblr.com).


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